Without knowledge there is no liberation; without faith there is no knowledge

Śraddhā — faith, trust, the willingness to investigate without prior certainty — is the condition for knowledge, and knowledge is the condition for liberation. It is not blind faith; it is the openness to examine the possibility that what you believe about yourself may be wrong. Without that openness, inquiry does not start. Without inquiry, there is no discovery. Without discovery, ignorance persists. The chain is: śraddhā → jñāna → mukti.